At some point, every dynamically changing company face some problems that must overcome in order to start functioning more efficiently. The main barrier is often inflexible software and high costs. As the company grows, the number of employees, transactions, and infrastructure should be increased, as well as the costs of servers, software, and hardware. How to remain effective and flexible while reducing costs? Does it seem unrealistic? Not without one, small solution — Cloud computing.

Cloud computing is a rapidly growing type of IT service. The cloud is not an option anymore. It becomes a requirement for the proper functioning in the market. In the IDC “Cloud View” report from 2017, 75% of entrepreneurs all over the world admit that their expenses on cloud computing are growing systematically and could reach 10% of all IT funds soon. Only the biggest players offer this solution – from Amazon (AMS hosting) and Cisco to Microsoft. One of the most effective and complex offers comes from the last one. It is called Microsoft Azure.

What exactly is it?

Azure is a cloud with computing resources and additional services that can help you to create your own applications, make cloud CMS and be a complete IT environment. Moreover, all these are available at any time. Why should you be interested in moving your business to the cloud, even if you run a small company?

1. You can optimize your costs

While you run a business, you probably realized that IT that absorbs a huge part of the company’s budget. Unfortunately, I don’t have the best news for you – these expenses will be growing from year to year. You can easily reduce it with a cloud. If your company starts using cloud services, you will not have to expand your own IT department and employ expensive specialists, create your own data centers or IT infrastructure. All you need to do is buy access to the cloud and selected services offered.

In the cloud, you can store all databases, programs, and applications you use on an everyday basis. How much you pay depends entirely on your business needs. Azure hosting is fully scalable, so you only use the server space you need, and pay only for the resources used. What is more, you don’t have to invest in infrastructure and software actualization. If you decide to migrate to the cloud, you don’t have to worry about costs made by keeping up your servers, hardware, actualizations, and programs. You save on IT employees and electricity expenses. In cloud computing you pay only for resources you really use, keeping costs under control. All of that reduces the risk of running business perceptibly.

2. You can improve data security

Many companies, particularly small ones, try to save money on tools responsible for cybersecurity. In fact, this leads to relevant data loss, and in a result, to loss of money. Thanks to employing cloud solutions, you can limit this danger. First of all – you don’t have to use traditional forms of data carriers (such as external drives or pen drives). Also, in the cloud, any regular data backups are created automatically so you don't have to worry about backups anymore. Moreover, your cloud IT is resistant to fires, floods, and other disasters, while with the traditional solution, ALL your data and equipment would be completely destroyed. This kind of situation took place in Poland over a month ago. There was a fire of a server room of T-Mobile (mobile operator). A big part of the company’s network infrastructure and customer service systems were destroyed in a few hours.

The Microsoft Azure cloud platform is one of the safest solutions that can secure access to your company’s data. It has the largest amount of certificates required on the market. Azure is a leader among competitors in the area. As the first company in the world, it has implemented cloud privacy protection solutions – ISO / IEC 27018.

3. You can increase the mobility of your employees

Cloud computing allows you and your employees to use the software and resources regardless of where you actually are. All you need is internet access and any device. New resources are launched immediately, and you can access the application from anywhere.

Moreover, your employees can also communicate with each other better. They can contact and react in real time and send various data instantly. This allows to improve the company’s work significantly and react quickly to various market occurrences at the time they are happening.

For the younger generation, the possibility of mobile work according to their own working style, as well as access to new technologies are very attractive. Cloud computing prevents from a necessity of going back to your office after working hours just to sent to your customer that one file you forgot to send. Life becomes much easier, don’t you think?

Cloud computing also prevents the necessity to go to the office after hours to send the client a file that you forgot. Life becomes so much simpler immediately.

4. You can adapt it to your current needs

The type of cloud computing is adapted to the particular company’s type and its capacity for computing power. Do you need to build and deploy Umbraco CMS solution for the cloud? That is not a problem. The capacity of the cloud grows with you and your needs because you decide about the use of resources. While the company is growing, and the amount of data is constantly increasing, you can easily change your package to a bigger one. This significantly increases your company ‘s flexibility and scalability and the convenience of running a business as well. That is why Microsoft Azure cloud is a perfect solution for both small, local companies and huge organizations with multiple departments.

5. You can forget about updates

In the cloud, your software is updated automatically. This easement may seem seemingly trivial, but if we consider the fact that the majority of programming producers release 4 applications updates per month on average, you would have to spend many hours just on making updates.

With cloud computing, you have constant access to the newest technologies and IT environments consolidation all the time. Your developers and an IT specialist can manage applications and implement new solutions from a global network anytime and anywhere they want. Unless you tell them to stay in the office, of course.

6. You can free up your IT employees

There would be no trickery – cloud can really do most everything for you. There is no need to ask valuable IT department employees to spend hours on maintaining servers, taking care of constant updates or fixing bugs. If they spend less time on that, they are free to focus more on strategic initiatives and new technological solutions that can help your company to really grow. When everyone in your team focuses on their core competencies, the company has a huge opportunity to use its true potential. Doesn’t that sound promising?

How to migrate to the cloud?

Difficulty in implementation and optimization definitely should not stop you from using many benefits of moving the business to cloud. Migration does not have to be complicating and never-ending process. What you need is a reliable cloud partner who is ready to support you from the beginning and help with your ongoing efforts afterward. Every industry and every company are different, so completely other aspects of cloud services can be important for each business.

Do not miss this excellent digital transformation. Thanks to modern IT solutions, such as Azure, your costs could be optimized and business may become more competitive. Greater profit and flexible convenience in one. Is this not the case in business? If you want an experienced Azure provider, don’t hesitate to contact us.